A northwest Oklahoma City medical group practice is asking for its buffalo statue to be returned after it was stolen.

Workers told police that they came to work Monday morning at Orthopedic Associates Inc., 3301 NW 50th St., and noticed that a buffalo statue, painted as a skeleton, was no longer in front of the building. The 250-pound piece of art, which was used in Oklahoma's centennial celebration, was at the business Sunday afternoon, according to a police report.

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"It's kind of hard to believe," Dr. Tom Flescher said. "I don't know why anyone would want it. It was just a thing to celebrate the Nature Conservatory."

The group bought the statue about 10 years ago for $1,500 from the Nature Conservatory and paid an artist $3,500 to make it for them, Flescher said.

"We used it often to tell people what doors to go in, what building to go in," he said.

Anyone with information about the buffalo statue's whereabouts is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 405-235-7300 or send a tip online.